C13 I Was Banned

After the call ended, the content supervisor turned to the chairman. Elwood nodded and instructed, "Go ahead and freeze it. We've poured so much money into Money Nightingale and are locked into a five-year contract. If he runs into trouble, we're looking at a loss of hundreds of millions over the next five years. Meeting adjourned."

As the chairman concluded, the executives chimed in, "Let's not bother the chairman with such matters next time. We're all swamped. If you, as the content supervisor, can't handle this, what good are you to us?"

Once the executives dispersed, the chairman gestured dismissively. The content supervisor, head hung low, made his way back to the office where a team awaited his response. He slumped into his chair with a heavy sigh, gazing at the ceiling before reluctantly checking his phone to find an unread message.

"Old Zhang, come back to Chili Live. You're undervalued at Cat's Tooth, especially as an outsider. Chili Live is where we started, isn't it?"

Meyer, the content supervisor, had an ordinary name but an extraordinary past. Ten years ago, he and some college friends founded Chili Live. Despite a rocky start, the platform gained momentum after signing Money Nightingale, who brought in a massive following and propelled Chili Live into a period of explosive growth.

However, when Money Nightingale defected to Cat's Tooth Live, Chili Live's fortunes plummeted. Eventually, Meyer also made the switch to Cat's Tooth Live.

"Director, Everett's popularity is soaring. Shouldn't we consider offering him a contract?" asked the secretary as she entered. Talented and attractive, she was one of Meyer's recruits from Chili Live.

Meyer clenched his fists, teeth gritted. After a tense moment, he declared, "Ban the account."

The secretary was taken aback, thinking she had misunderstood. "Director, a ban? But his account is extremely popular. The live broadcasts are engaging, and he seems poised for continued success. With the Ironwharf desert encroaching on Shaoland, anything related to the desert is trending. Plus, he's live streaming his farming efforts in the desert. This..."

"Account suspension! Don't you understand what that means?"

Meyer was furious, his outburst startling the secretary who hadn't seen him this angry in a long time. She was momentarily frozen with fear before finally responding, "Yes, Director."

Meanwhile, in the Ironwharf desert, Everett sat atop a sand dune, gazing out at the plain he had stumbled upon. His fan base was growing, with subscriptions nearing the million mark—something he had never anticipated. The number of tips he was receiving was also substantial. If his predictions were correct, he would rake in nearly 100,000 in tips by evening.

With that money, Everett planned to purchase more desert pillar cacti from the Merchant Shop. His goal was to surround the hundred-acre plain with these cacti before the windy season began, to prevent the dunes from swallowing up the small flatland.

Ding dong!

As Everett sat under the blazing sun, daydreaming of a bright future, a notification appeared in his live broadcast room. He opened it to find a message from the Cat's Tooth Live support team.

"Dear Mr. Thomas, we regret to inform you that your live broadcast has violated the terms of Cat's Tooth Live, and as a result, we must suspend your account. We ask for your understanding."

After reading the message, Everett tried to access his live stream room only to find it had gone dark.

"Damn it!"

He was on the verge of swearing up a storm. After risking his life to get from the Bellhand Scenic Area to the plains, just as the money was within reach, just as he was about to rent a Hummer, he was hit with an account suspension?

Everett frantically tried logging in again, only to find his account had been permanently closed for rule violations.

Sitting on the burning sand dune, Everett felt utterly lost. The crushing disappointment mixed with shattered hopes caused his hands to tremble uncontrollably.

"It has to be Money Nightingale. It's definitely him!"

In a fit of rage, Everett grabbed a fistful of sand and hurled it to the ground, vowing to remember this betrayal.

With no money left, there was no point in staying on the plain. Everett took his phone and headed straight back to his Oasis Scenic Area. He was sure there were other ways to make money; he just hadn't figured them out yet.

Upon returning to Bellhand, the air temperature dropped by several degrees, offering a cool respite. Lying in the grass, Everett stared at his sunburned arm, questioning whether it had all been worth it.

Everett had always lived by the mantra that hard work would be rewarded. But today, it seemed the universe was about to prove him wrong.

"The boundless sky is my love..." he hummed, feeling downcast.

Suddenly, a cool tune interrupted his gloom—his phone was ringing. Lying in the grass, Everett fished out the device and eyed the unfamiliar number with suspicion.

"Who could this be? It's from Hangzhou, but I don't recall knowing anyone there. Could this be a scam call?"

Money was tight for Everett. Was someone trying to swindle him out of his seed money?

"Hello? Who is this?"

He was ready to dismiss the call, but boredom in the Ironwharf desert got the better of him, and he answered after a brief hesitation. A chat with a scammer might at least be entertaining.

"Hello, is this Mr. Everett? I'm Sara, the content department manager at Cat's Tooth. Your live broadcast content violated our policies, so we've had to block your account. However, we will transfer the money from your fans' gifts to you. Could you provide your..."

"Oh, really? I don't have a bank card..."

These scammers were getting sophisticated!

"We could add each other on WeChat. I need to confirm something with you, and it would facilitate further collaboration."

"WeChat, huh? Scammers are really stepping up their game."

"Let's do it. I'm a smart guy; I'll entertain your game. After all, I'm broke and bored."

Everett gave Sara his WeChat details. Shortly after hanging up, someone with a Cat's Tooth avatar added him. Without a word, they sent him 120,000 yuan.

Yes, this was the full amount his fans had tipped him—not the split amount. Initially, Everett was only entitled to 60,000 yuan, but the Cat's Tooth content director had topped up the rest.

Having received the cash, Everett was bemused. "Are scammers really investing this much now?"

No sooner had he accepted the money than his WeChat lit up with an incoming video call. Considering he had just accepted their money, which would be a big help, Everett felt obliged to take the call.

With a beep, he answered, and a charming face with delicate features, peach-blossom eyes, a high nose bridge, finely arched eyebrows, and curly black hair framed by black-rimmed glasses appeared on the screen.

"Big sister?"

She had a rather aloof expression, a stark contrast to the helpful Marian.

"Hello, I'm Sara, the content director at Cat's Tooth. Could I take a look at your surroundings?"